Texas veterans parade hit by train did not have city permit

SAN ANGELO, Texas (Reuters) - The Texas parade where four veterans were killed last week when a freight train crashed into a float did not have a permit, the city of Midland said on Tuesday.

A Union Pacific train on November 15 hit a flat bed trailer carrying wounded veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and their wives, killing four and wounding 16.

The National Transportation Safety Board said the warning signal lights flashed, the alarm sounded and the arm came down on one of the parade floats before the train traveling at 62 miles per hour hit the trailer.

Police have identified the dead as Marine Chief Warrant Officer Gary Stouffer, 37; Army Sergeant Major Lawrence Boivin, 47; Army Sergeant Major William Lubbers, 43; and Army Sergeant Joshua Michael, 34.

In a statement, the city of Midland, a booming oil city in West Texas, said the parade sponsored by the private "Show of Support" group, did not have a permit.

"The City of Midland did not issue a permit, nor did the city receive a permit application from the Show of Support organization," said Midland spokesman Ryan Stout.

It was not immediately clear if the organization had sought and received permits in previous years. It was the third year the parade had used the same route.